Chapter 8 ~ The Support

[Louis]

Obviously, mom had agreed to come here just because Anne had told her that Harry seemed different now that he didn't have me any longer, just like mom had noticed that I wasn't the same without him. They wanted to know how he had met Liam and probably even separate the two of them.

It was pretty clear, but I still found it weird considering Anne hadn't been against the fact that I started dating Hannah. She had been happy for me, that I had been able to move on. However, maybe that was only before she knew that Harry had pretty much changed personality. I doubted I would be able to do anything about it though. I mean, I wasn't even sure I wanted to know this Harry.

Liam was surprised by the question, and so would I if I were him. It was something she would ask Harry about, not him considering she didn't know him. "Uh..." He trailed off, glancing at his boyfriend for help, but Harry just nodded for him to speak. "We met in a shop, actually. We were shopping for clothes and coincidentally crossed paths. After that, we started texting and went on a few dates before getting into a relationship. We hit it off pretty straight away," he explained.

I looked away, biting my bottom lip. It was hard, hearing how it sounded so easy, like Harry hadn't even hesitated at all before getting into a new relationship. I didn't know anything about his new life, but knowing from the past, he wasn't one to just jump into relationships. To be honest, he wasn't one to date at all. Before we got together, that was.

It also hurt because I remembered how long it took for me to accept the fact of moving on and getting together with Hannah. At first, I was sure I was only using her as a rebound, and I hated myself for that. However, as time went on, I noticed how great she was and that I really enjoyed her company. She usually made me get my mind off Harry and there were not many people who could manage that. Though, it hadn't been easy for me, and hearing how easy it was for Harry to move on from me hurt. Bad.

"That sounds... Great," mom said, trying to smile but the corners of her lips barely curled.

Harry stayed silent, and it actually surprised me. I thought he wanted to show Liam off and be eager to tell us about how they met. Sure, he was sitting here with his ex, but judging by the way he had acted the first time I met him, it wouldn't have surprised me at all. It was like I didn't mean anything to him anymore and never had.

"It was," Liam smiled. "Wasn't it, Harry?"

The curly haired boy nodded, smiling at his boyfriend and leaning in to give him a quick kiss. I looked away, not saying anything because really, what was I supposed to say? I wasn't happy for them, and I hated to lie, so it was best if I just shut up.

"It sure was."

We sat there for a while longer, talking about other things that weren't so touchy, until it was time for us to finally head home. Note the word 'finally', because to be honest, I hadn't enjoyed a second of this lunch. The only thing that was nice was to meet Anne and Robin again.

Mom got up from her chair, followed by Fizzy who seemed to be getting a little tired. Lottie had stopped trying to get a hold of Harry, and it surprised me that it didn't even seem to bother her. Maybe she realized he was a lost cause, just like I had done.

We all hugged each other when we got to the hallway. Harry and Liam had gone up to the curly haired boy's room, so they weren't a part of all the hugging, luckily. Anne looked apologetic as I stepped forward to wrap my arms around her. "I'm so sorry about him, Lou. I wish I could say or do something, but he's like a wall. It's like he's a whole other person, and I don't know how to change him back. I think... I think you're the only one who can do it, make him get back to the old him. The real him. Once he realizes how much you mean to him... I think he's going to change. Well, at least I hope so," she said, looking down at the floor.

Giving her a tight hug, I took a step back to get a good look at her. "Anne, I... I don't know," I sighed, running a hand through my hair. "I don't think it's going to work. I mean, haven't you seen how he's treating me? It's like he doesn't even recognize me, like I'm a complete stranger to him. I don't think he's going to change, at least not for me. He's... He's moved on, and yeah, there's nothing to do about it."

She furrowed her eyebrows, shaking her head. "Please, Louis. I... I don't even recognize my son anymore, it's like I don't know him. I understand what you're saying and that it's all tough for you too. You probably don't want anything to do with him anymore, and I wouldn't either if I were you, but if you still care somewhere deep inside, then I would really like your help, okay? I've talked to Jay and she says that you still miss him even if he isn't the same anymore. Just... Just think about it, okay?"

I bit my bottom lip, thinking about it. I had never gone against Anne's wishes before, but I didn't know if I could go through with this one. It was going to hurt, a lot, and I wasn't sure if it was all worth it. Wasn't it better to just move on? For real this time?

"Anne, I... I'm sorry, but I don't think I can do it. If Harry wants to change, then he will in time. I know it sounds selfish, but I can't risk getting hurt like that. I'm really sorry," I mumbled, feeling ashamed of myself.

It was selfish of me, but I just couldn't go through with it. If I had been feeling miserable the last two years, then it wouldn't even compare to how I was going to feel if I would try get Harry back to the old him. I was going to hurt on another level, and I was certain I wouldn't be able to handle that.

Anne sent me a small smile, shaking her head. "Don't be sorry, love. I understand. It would be too hard on you. I should be the one saying sorry. It was selfish of me to ask you in the first place. I just guess I'm kind of desperate, you know?" She chuckled dryly.

I returned her smile and gave her another hug. "I get it, Anne. You don't have to apologize."

Once we had all said our goodbyes, mom, Lottie, Fizzy and I headed home. We shut the door behind us and started walking along the sidewalk. It all started off in silence, until Lottie broke it.

"You were right, Lou. He has changed. I don't even recognize him anymore. What happened to the Harry that used to laugh and make funny jokes all the time? Or the one who would never shut up?"

Mom wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "We don't know, honey. The only thing we know is that something happened to him. Perhaps, fame hit him a bit too hard."

Lottie sighed and I just stayed silent. Nothing more needed to be said anyway. After that, we continued walking home and it didn't take more than a few minutes until we stepped through the front door and got inside the silent house. I was just about to go upstairs to my room when mom called me back, telling me she wanted to talk to me.

I did as told and sat down at the kitchen table while she sat opposite of me. She put her hands on the table, her eyes looking deep into mine. "Alright, from now on, you do completely as you want, okay? Today, I'll admit it, I was hopeful about what Anne told me when she called and asked us over. I've seen the way you have been lately, and when she said that Harry hadn't been the same either, I couldn't help but get a little hopeful and excited. I mean, we always thought you were meant for each other, and we thought that if you two just talked, it would all work out. However, I noticed today that... It's worse than I thought, and I realize now that it's up to you what you want to do, if you're willing to try and get him back or if you decide that he isn't worth it. I won't try to make that decision for you. So, from here on, I'm going to be natural and just listen to you, alright?"

I couldn't help the smile that formed on my lips by her words. Had I ever mentioned how much I loved my mom? Well, now I had. She was amazing. "Thank you, mom. I appreciate that."

She returned the smile and gave me a small nod. "You know, if you really tried, I think you could be happy again. Hannah is a good girl."

"Yeah, she is," I said, realizing now even more how right she was. Hannah was great, and if I really fought for her and our relationship, I could probably forget all about Harry eventually.

With that thought in my head, I left my mom and walked up to my room. Once there, I lied down on my bed and fished my phone from my pocket. Coincidentally, I had got a message from Hannah herself, asking me how I was doing.

The text made a smile form on my lips, and just because I was so hopeful right then, I even asked her if she wanted to come over and have a movie night. Thankfully, she replied right away that she would be here in five minutes.

Meanwhile I was waiting for her, I decided to go down and make some popcorn in the microwave. Mom was still there and she looked at me strangely when she saw what I was doing. "Are you making popcorn?"

I rolled my eyes. "No, I'm frying eggs. What does it look like I'm doing?" I joked.

She sent me a knowing look, making me sigh. "Alright, yes, I'm making popcorn. Hannah is coming over to watch a movie. She'll probably stay the night too, if that's okay?"

Quite surprisingly, her lips turned upwards at my words. "That sounds lovely, and of course she's free to stay the night. But, that doesn't mean I want you to do something I wouldn't, alright?"

Rolling my eyes, I took the bag of popcorn from the microwave and groaned. "Mom, seriously? I'm not fifteen, alright?"

She put her hands up. "I'm just trying to be a responsible mother, alright? I don't want you to be a young dad."

I chuckled, pouring the popcorn in an empty bowl. "Alright, I get it. Thank you very much for thinking of me, mom."

"You're welcome," she smiled, and I just rolled my eyes again. She was a weird one, I'll tell you that.

Right then, the doorbell went off. I walked to the hallway and was happy to see my girlfriend standing there, shrugging off her jacket. As soon as she realized I was there, she looked up with a smile on her face. "Hi."

"Hey, there," I chuckled, walking over to give her a kiss on the lips, still with the bowl in my hand. "I made popcorn," I said, motioning to the bowl.

She clapped her hands happily. "Awesome."

Together, we walked up the stairs to my room and laid down on my bed. I turned the TV on and went onto Netflix in search of a good movie. We weren't very picky, so it didn't take long until we found one to watch. I placed the bowl of popcorn in the middle of us and grabbed a handful of them.

We were about halfway through the movie when I could feel myself get very thirsty. I paused the movie and turned to Hannah. "You want something to drink? All the salt has made me thirsty."

She nodded. "Yeah, that sounds great."

I went down to get us two glasses of coke before walking back up again. Hannah was sitting on the bed now, her phone in her hands. She looked up when I entered and reached her hand out for the glass once I sat down beside her. "Thanks, babe."

"Welcome."

I was just about to press play when she stopped me by speaking up. "Um, I wanted to ask you something."

A little surprised, I turned to look at her and waited for her to continue. She took a deep breath. "I just... I just wanted to know how you're handling all this. You know, with Harry's return and everything. Are you alright?"

My heart that had started beating faster when she said she wanted to ask me something slowly started beating normally again. "I appreciate that you're asking me. I'm actually feeling quite alright about it now. I mean, it's not hard to tell that he's moved on completely, and sure, it is hard to witness it, but I'm positive it's going to be okay. I'm starting to accept the fact that he's not a part of my life anymore."

She placed a hand on my thigh and gave it a small squeeze. "I'm glad you're thinking so positively about it. If I were you, I would probably not even attend school. I mean, he won't even look at you anymore. You were so close, and now he's treating you like you were air."

I gave her a small smile. "Yeah, I guess that's probably one of the reasons why it's easier to just not think about him. He doesn't want anything to do with me, and I don't with him anymore either. That way, it's easy to just move on."

One of the reasons why I liked Hannah so much was because she was so understanding. It didn't matter that we were in a relationship, she still got that it was hard for me to move on from Harry considering we had been so close. She didn't even show a sign of jealousy when we talked about him, and that meant so much to me. She could have easily been one of those girls who didn't want to talk about an ex of mine because it was she that mattered now, and not them. However, Hannah wasn't like that. She was more understanding than any girl I had ever met, and maybe that was why we had always had that friendship kind of relationship more than the romantic one.

"I'm glad you're trying to look at it on the bright side. But, if you ever want to talk about it, just know that I'm here, alright? You know you can tell me anything."

"I know," I said, leaning my head on her shoulder. "You're the best, Hannah. You know that?"

She chuckled, making my entire head vibrate. "I just care, Louis. That's all."

Well, she, together with my mom were the most caring people I knew, and I had never realized until now just how happy I should be that I had them in my life. Without them, I would probably have given up life completely by now.

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Another chapter! I hope you enjoyed this one and look forward to the other! I'm so glad to see that there are still people reading this story. You are the best, love you.

Pauline. xx